Today I’m thrilled to have agent Kristy Hunter here. She is an
associate literary agent at The Knight
Agency.

FYI,
I’m taking over the agent spotlights from Casey. I will be providing all the
same information we’ve shared in the past in an interview format. In addition,
one lucky commenter will win a query critique from the agent being interviewed.

Status: Open to submissions.

Hi­ Kristy! Thanks so much for joining us.

About Kristy:

1. Tell us how you became an agent, how long you’ve been
one, and what you’ve been doing as an agent.

I graduated from college and knew I wanted to get involved
in the publishing industry—I just wasn’t sure how. I attended the Columbia
Publishing Course and fell in love with the industry and New York. Upon
completing the course, I interned in Bloomsbury Children’s Books’ editorial
department before working in publicity at Grove/Atlantic and Random House
Children’s Books. There’s something so rewarding about acting as a book’s
publicist and being an author’s cheerleader. Still, I was eager to get back to
the creative process I experienced on the editorial side of things. I’ve now
been with The Knight Agency for three years and feel so lucky that I get to help
my clients shape their fantastic projects and also be their cheerleader
throughout the process. For me, it’s the best of both worlds.

About the Agency:

2. Share a bit about your agency and what it offers to its
authors.

Since 1996 The Knight Agency (TKA) has focused on
comprehensive client services and hands-on management to guide countless
writers from query letter to published book, in the process developing a
powerhouse roster of bestselling authors.

Our team has placed well over 2,000 titles across the entire spectrum of New
York publishers, as well as at independent houses throughout the country.
Though we have represented clients in virtually all genres, our areas of
fiction expertise include women’s, romance, young adult, middle grade,
literary, mystery, fantasy, and science fiction, as well as multicultural and
inspirational/religious fiction.

The agency focuses on a broad range of client services, addressing all aspects
of our clients’ careers. TKA agents bring their extensive experience and
knowledge of subsidiary rights management in the areas of foreign, motion
picture and television, audio, merchandising, and electronic rights.
Additionally, our marketing and publicity department offers wide-ranging
support in the areas of book promotion and branding.

In the continually evolving world of publishing, TKA remains committed to
providing cutting-edge services and scouting for fresh, unique voices to bring
to the forefront. Yet what truly sets us apart are the lasting relationships
between our authors and our team; ultimately, for us, it’s all about
people.

What She’s Looking
For:

3. What age groups do you represent—picture books, MG,
and/or YA? What genres do you represent and what are you looking for in
submissions for these genres?

I represent romance, women’s fiction, literary/commercial
fiction, historical fiction, young adult, and middle grade (no picture books). I’d
love to find projects that feature sibling relationships and/or a strong sense
of place. My favorite projects are those that leave me looking at the world through
a different lens and feature authentic characters with strong voices.

4. Is there anything
you would be especially excited to seeing in the genres you are interested in?

Right now, I’m really looking for heartfelt middle grade
projects. Something that is accessible and doesn’t pull you down, but still has
this fabulous undercurrent of wisdom. I’m always drawn to stories that show how
hard middle school can be—especially when it comes to outgrowing/losing
friends. I love YA with a great romantic thread and tend to gravitate towards
contemporary projects that are more upbeat. I’m also a sucker for anything with
a boarding school setting. When it comes to YA fantasy, I’m happy to go darker
and enjoy being transported by strong worldbuilding and a great sense of
intrigue. Magical realism is something I don’t see in my inbox very often but
I’m a huge fan. For that, I would hope to see something that skewed a little
more literary and would be open to either YA or MG. Also, I’d love to see more
#ownvoices projects as well as stories that don’t shy away from hard-hitting or
potentially controversial issues.

That said, it’s sometimes the project that I least expect
that captures my attention! I’m really just looking for strong writing and
original concepts.

What She Isn’t
Looking For:

5. What types of submissions are you not interested in?

This is always a difficult question because with the right voice,
anything has the potential to hook me. That said, rarely do I connect to sci-fi
projects and I typically don’t enjoy anything that is set in space or features
aliens.

Agent Philosophy:

6. What is your philosophy as an agent both in terms of the
authors you want to work with and the books you want to represent?

Like many agents and editors, I see books as such an
important part of everyday life. Whether they provide entertainment, shape
someone’s outlook, or transport readers to worlds beyond their imagination, books
really are invaluable to society. I hope to continue to represent books that do
all this and more. I’m looking for authors who recognize that, in some ways,
they’ve been given a great responsibility, but who also greet the task with as
much enthusiasm as I do. I feel very lucky to be working in such an incredible
industry and I like partnering with authors who feel the same way.

Editorial Agent:

7. Are you an editorial agent? If so, what is your process
like when you’re working with your authors before submitting to editors?

When it comes to editing, I’m hands-on. But the process
varies greatly from project to project. I’ve had instances where several rounds
of edits were needed before going out on submission (largely this happens with
projects that involve worldbuilding). On the other hand, I’ve had projects that
only needed some light line edits and they were ready to go. I never feel the
need to edit a project just for the sake of editing—or so that I can have my
‘stamp’ on it. When I offer on a project, I’m always very upfront about any
edits that may be needed. I see the author/agent relationship as a
collaborative one and, because of that, I want to be sure I’m the right person
to help the author fully realize their vision and put their strongest project
out on submission.

9. Do you have any
specific dislikes in query letters or the first pages submitted to you?

My number one pet peeve in not following the submission
guidelines. They exist for a reason and it’s an automatic red flag when writers
ignore them. Also, query letters should be compelling, short and sweet—no need
to have every single character and plot point explained. Our website has some great
tips for writing strong query letters (http://knightagency.net/query-letter-tips/
).

Response Time:

10. What’s your response time to queries and requests for
more pages of a manuscript?

For queries, I respond in 2-3 business days. For partials, I
respond in about 4 weeks. Full manuscripts can take a little longer, but I aim
to respond within 6-8 weeks. If authors don’t hear from me within those time
frames, I encourage them to follow up. Sometimes conferences and client work
put me behind schedule and I’m always happy to confirm with writers that their
projects are still in my queue to be reviewed.

Self-Published and
Small Press Authors:

11. Are you open to
representing authors who have self-published or been published by smaller
presses? What advice do you have for them if they want to try to find an agent
to represent them?

I’m open to authors being self-published or published by a
smaller press. Sometimes I see queries for the second (or third) book in a self-published
series. This is a hard sell for agents because publishers are typically looking
to represent the full series. I’d encourage writers to think about how they’d
like to see the series published as a whole before making any decisions with
the first title.

12. With all the changes in publishing—self-publishing,
hybrid authors, more small publishers—do you see the role of agents changing at
all? Why?

Agents act as partners to their clients. They offer support
and provide critical insight to help their authors navigate the tricky waters
of creating a successful writing career. As the publishing landscape changes, what
‘navigating a successful career’ looks like may change (and has changed), but
at its core, the agent’s role has by and large remained the same. Hybrid author
or not, your agent is there to help guide you and your career as you strive to reach
your goals.

Clients:

13. Who are some of the authors you represent?

I’m in the process of building my list and looking for
really strong writers in the genres I represent. I’ve just recently
placed works by Sharon Wray, JC Welker, and Gary Blackwood.

Interviews and Guest
Posts:

14. Please share the links to any interviews and guest posts
you think would be helpful to writers interested in querying you.

16. Is there any other advice you’d like to share with
aspiring authors that we haven’t covered?

In the words of Stephen King, “If you don’t have the time to
read, you don’t have the time (or tools) to write. Simple as that.” There’s
no better way to put it. When I’m pitched at a conference or receive a query, I
know immediately who’s familiar with the genre they’re working in—and it’s
always an avid reader. I can’t stress how important it is to read in order to
succeed at writing.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Kristy.

­Kristy is generously offering a query critique to one lucky winner. To
enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follower button if
you're not a follower) and leave a comment through April 8th. If your e-mail
is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to
enter either contest. If you do not want to enter the contest, that's okay.
Just let me know in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this
in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. This is an international
giveaway.

Have any experience with this agent? See something that needs updating?
Please leave a comment or e-mail me at natalieiaguirre7@gmail.com

Note: These agent profiles and interviews presently focus on agents who
accept children's fiction. Please take the time to verify anything you might
use here before querying an agent. The information found here is subject to
change.

I'm so happy I stumbled upon this article! What a great opportunity. Kristy sounds like an amazing agent, and there are quite a few aspects from her wish list that my MG manuscript meets (sibling relationship, fantasy, the difficulties of middles school and friendship). Can't wait to query (though I will wait to see if I win the query critique first). Fingers crossed! :)

Kristy is a perfect agent for two of my projects. I have a YA with a strong sibling relationship, and I have a MG that sounds like it fits too. I'll share this post on Twitter. I'd love to win a critique! tmilstein at gmail.com